Well, I’m not here to teach you how to be a DJ, or to make money selling lies. There are plenty of schools and videos on social media that will do that (teach you to press buttons and take your money selling lies) — although my pedagogy is excellent for teaching — but I don’t want that, and I’d just be one of the thousands telling you to press play — and especially SYNC 😎...

However, I’ll give you advice worth an entire college degree:

• Playing is not pressing play. Learn to play with vinyl records, with a CDJ, with a controller — and even with a tape deck (cassette) if you get the chance. Experiment with everything, apply everything, adjust, flip it around, make a samba, use cheesy techniques, create a podcast, a channel, do live sets, show what you’ve learned and discovered.

• Study, produce, invent, create style, create trends. Play for five friends, play for a thousand strangers… study to sharpen your musical perception.

• Learn about measures, bars, intros, breaks, offbeats, drops, etc.

• Be absolutely sure that many people will say you’re not good, or that you’re good (just like the others), that your style is too heavy, too fast, too different, or that it doesn’t fit the lineup… but that’s exactly what will make you a DJ: personality, authenticity, persistence, and love for music.

• Unconditional love for electronic music, regardless of what your friends and family think or say. But be careful — no preconceived notions.

• Love for the DJ profession, because this is a lifestyle, something that disconnects you from here and takes you to another universe.

• Don’t stick to just one style at the beginning. Play House, Tribal, Techno, Trance, Jungle, Drum’n Bass… train your ears and notice different sounds (that’s what makes you unique). Listen to Jazz, Disco, Blues, Rock from the 60s and 70s, Synthpop, Reggae… Expand your mind and increase your musical versatility. Then, with that experience, find a style that satisfies you and imprint your personality on it.

BE CAREFUL!!!

Every DJ has an EGO war inside them. No exceptions!!! You will find this out, sooner or later. The difference is that few know how to work through it and are humble enough to recognize their flaws and learn from their mistakes. Others will forever be arrogant "little stars," no matter how much time passes, how many people they need to step on, or how many flatterers they need to achieve their status—this applies a lot to the Instagram DJ.

Don't be fooled. Stardom takes its toll. The fall is a freefall! It's incredible how that guy who was your "colleague" in the profession and used to invite you to play can simply pull you off the stage before the end of your set just because he realized you have more stage presence than him.

I'm just here to spread a culture.

It's your job to be a DJ. 

Chase your success!

Hard Lang